Judging

                                                                             What About Judging?

    FROM time to time we need to be reminded that the thinking of this world is by no means the thinking of God, nor should it be of His children. Which was exactly the sentiment of two of God’s prophets; “I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps” (Jeremiah 10:23 - ASV) and “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith Jehovah” (Isaiah 55:8 - ASV).

     In our age of tolerance, [keeping in mind that many have swallowed the Humanist doctrine of “I’m ok, You’re ok”], we are being told that it is wrong to judge anyone. After all, as the condemnation goes, “we are all sinners, and only God can judge.” Most who hold this belief, misuse or misunderstand the Scriptures concerning the act of judging; thinking that God never allows, let alone demands that His children judge others. Let’s stop and evaluate this most important issue in accordance with God’s Word, and see if it is truly a sin for us to judge another person.

     As with every Bible subject, we must first think this through rationally and logically, and to harmonize the Scriptures. If it were true that we are never to “judge,” [implying both religiously and secularly] then would it not be true that we can never make “judgment calls?” Of course, it does. Webster’s Dictionary defines the word “judge” as; “to conclude or decide by the exercise of judgment; to estimate or suppose.” While at the same time Webster says judgment denotes; “The mental act of judging; the operation of the mind involving comparison and discrimination, by which knowledge of values is mentally formulated; the act of determining,”

     We must first keep in mind that we only refer to Webster as a starting point for this discussion, because it is the Greek word from the Scriptures, we are most interested in. The Greek verbs of the New Testament found in most passages are [1] “krino” which means “to judge, to determine, select or choose” [2] “Anakrino” meaning, “to examine, question, investigate” and [3] “Diakrino” which denotes, “discriminating, discerning, deciding.”

                                                                             Examples of Judging

     The most popular of texts used to argue against our being able to judge is found in Matthew 7:1-5. Maintaining the context as it always necessary for proper Bible interpretation, we find that the Lord is most certainly not condemning all judging. Notice what our Savior says: “Judge not, that ye be not judge. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you. And why beholdest thou the mote that is thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, let me cast out the mote out of thine eye; and lo, the beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye!”

     There are two very important words found in this text that reveals for us the facts about judging. [1] in the last part of verse 5 Jesus said “first.” Notice that He did not say we are never to judge another, but He said “first” cast out the beam from your own eye. Which has reference to the second word [2] “hypocrite.” Jesus is criticizing those to whom He is speaking (the Jews) for their “hypocritical” type of judgment. In other words, they were living with sin in their lives, never taking time to assure that they were living up to God’s standards, yet all the while looking at the sins the Gentiles were committing. The Christian, by the Biblical standpoint is not a sinner but a saint. To be a “sinner” means one is willfully living contrary to God’s will, with no desire to repent. The saint on the other hand, is one who is seeking daily to obey God, to become perfect, even though he may occasionally transgress God’s law.

     The context of Matthew 7 when studied logically shows that Jesus never commanded that we not to judge others, but that when we do so, we are not to judge hypocritically. The Greek word for “judge” in this passage is the root word “krino” which means to “determine, select, choose, conclude, call in question, condemn.” When Jesus said, “Judge not,” He was not saying, “Never judge, never call into question, never make a determination.” Someone may counter with “but everybody sins, so we would all be hypocrites to judge.” If that were true, then Jesus would have set forth a warning for all to never judge – but He did not. Why would He continue in the context by commanding the one judging to make sure they have removed the beam out of their own eye first? In other words, make sure that you are not committing the same sin as the one you are judging. Of course, the only way that we have the right to decide is when someone is living out of step with God’s will (Ephesians 5:11; 2 Thessalonians 3:6; Romans 16:17). No one has the right to draw conclusions without sufficient evidence. To do so is to violate the commands of the Holy Spirit! Not to mention the fact that we can only judge matters where God has already judged as unrighteous (John 7:24).

     In 1 Corinthians 5 the apostle Paul reveals a situation that others have made him aware of – a Christian man was living with his father’s wife. Open fornication! And no one is doing anything about it. Paul said, “for I verily, being absent in body but present in spirit, have already as though I were present judged him that hath so wrought this thing….” (1 Corinthians 5:3). Notice Paul, although he was not present to see for himself, had heard from others of this situation, but was still authorized by God to “judge” the brother guilty of sin! Paul was simply following the dictates of Christ: “Judge not according to appearance but judge righteous judgment” (John 7:24).

     Paul had gathered all the evidence from credible witnesses and from that evidence and by the fact that God condemns fornication (Romans 1:28-32; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Revelation 21:8); he was able to pronounce judgment, a determination of guilt, a righteous judgment upon the brother. The fact that Paul judged this man guilty of sin, that is, drew the proper conclusion from the evidence presented him, shows that this Greek word “krino” commands Paul as well as all the brethren at Corinthian to “reach a conclusion and then act upon that conclusion by withdrawing fellowship from this ungodly brother.”

     In Romans 14 Paul condemned the type of judging that is “according to appearance.” This same kind of judging is mentioned also in Colossians 2:16-17. In matters of opinion or optional matters that God has left up to us, we are not to judge. But in matters of obligation, where God has commanded that men and women are to live and worship in a certain manner, we are commanded to judge – that is – call into question, decide as to whether admonition and rebuke is required. After having acquired all the relevant evidence so that the proper conclusion can be drawn, should we fail or refuse to judge others either unfit for the kingdom, or standing in error, we sin, and become just as guilty as the erring.

                                                                                Inability to Obey God

     If it were always wrong, that is a sin, to draw the proper conclusion, to call into question, to decide, about people and/or doctrine, then how could we obey God’s commands to do the following? “Give not that which is holy to the dogs, neither cast your pearls before the swine” (Matthew 7:6). This is a Hebrew thought that is expressed in parallelism. (Dogs and swine – Holy and pearls). Do not continue to offer what is sacred and of value to those who do not appreciate it. In other words, one must determine (judge) this to be the case. “Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves” (Matthew 7:15). Why would God give us such a command, if we cannot judge or determine if someone is a false prophet or not. “Them that sin reprove in the sight of all, that the rest also may be in fear” (1 Timothy 5:20). Again, we find the Word of God confusing. In Matthew 7 we are commanded never to judge, but here in 1 Timothy we are commanded to reprove in the sight of all, those that sin. How would I know that someone has sinned if I’m not allowed to judge? “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of God” (1 John 4:1). Proving or putting to the test every spirit, is synonymous with judging, with determining which spirits are following God and which ones are not. This is why it is so necessary to keep context on every subject, both remote and immediate, so that we do not fall for the error most have blindly believed. Satan is crafty, and for the most part, condemning others for judging is one way the devil has found to shut down the exposing of sin.

     There are many commands in the Scriptures that if all judging is wrong, we would not obey. Disobedience is synonymous to disbelief, and disbelief is sin. Yes, I just made a judgment, but it was according to the evidence provided to us all in God’s Word. James says, “to him that knows to do good, and does it not, it is sin” (James 4:17). Judging is doing good because it is being our brothers’ keeper. In Ezekiel 33, we find a very important principal that carries over into the Christian age – it is the Watchman on the wall. In ancient days, watchmen would stand on the walls of the city watching over the landscape, looking for possibly enemies. It was their duty to warn the town with a blow of his trumpet. It is the watchman’s duty to make a “judgment call” as to whether or not there appears to be danger for the people he is supposed to be protecting. If he chooses not to “judge,” and the enemy sweeps in and destroys the people, their blood is on his hands (Ezekiel 33:6).

     Every Christian has been commanded by God to preach the gospel, contend earnestly for the faith, rebuke, reprove, and exhort (Jude 3, 2 Timothy 4:2; Mark 16:15-16). To stand boldly for the truth is not to be guilty of ungodly judging. It is never ungodly, or un-Christ-like, to arrive at conclusions based on the Word of God and then to hold fast to those conclusions, and act if required. The Bible says, "Prove all things, hold fast to that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21).

To summarize, the types of judging that the Bible condemns are these:

• Hypocritical judgment where one is guilty of committing the same sin, they are condemning others for

• · Judging without sufficient evidence

• · Making a law or binding where God has not bound

• · Pronouncing eternal condemnation upon another individual.

  Let us make sure that we do not allow ourselves to be influenced by worldly thinking, prejudging, or hypocritical judging. Instead, let us always follow God’s commands and judge righteously.